Minecraft hikes price with beta version

Minecraft, the indie building game from Swedish developer Mojang Specifications, is preparing to enter its beta phase.

The freeform game has already brought in $10.1 million in revenue from the 753967 sales accrued during its long-running alpha phase.

Mojang boss Markus Persson intends to raise the price for the beta from $13 to $20, and promises "a larger focus on polish and content... testing and stability."

Also introduced will be more modding tools and "We'll also add some kind of non-intrusive narrative to the game to help drive the game experience early on, and to provide some kind of late game goal."

The beta launches on December 20; all alpha account holders will receive it and all future updates for free. Those buying the game after the beta's release, however, will need to pay an as yet unspecified charge for any extra content released after the final version.

Persson recently opened his own studio off the back of Minecraft's success, and is determined to achieve further success without third-party funding.